Bottle capping head



Feb. 18, 1947. c. w. GOODWINA 2,416,001 l l BOTTLE' CAPPING HEAD' Filed Sept. 7, 1944 Patented Feb. 18, 1947 BOTTLE CAPPING HEAD Carl W. Goodwin, North Plainfield, N.,J., assignor to American Seal- Ware, Wilmington, ware Kap Corporation of Dela- Del., a corporation of Dela- Appueation september v, 194.4, seriaiNo. 552,944

4 Claims.

This invention relates to machines for fastening and sealing exible skirted hood caps over the mouths of containers such as milk bottles.

An object of the invention is to provide a new and improved container capping machine of the general type referred to.

Another object is to provide a capping head having means for centering a exible hood cap on the mouth of a bottle, contracting the skirtportion of the cap around the head of the bottle with the application of a high contracting pressure thereto, and then positively releasing the cap from engagement with the centering means at the conclusion of the capping operation.

Still another object is to provide a capping head of the foregoing type having novel and improved details of construction and features of operation.

Various other objects and advantages will appear as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed.

In accordance with the present invention I pro- Vvide means in the capping head to first seat the cap on the internal ledge of the bottle, then fold the sheet downwardly and apply sealing pressure thereto. In this way the inside cap diaphragm and the pouring lip housing are positioned before the skirt is folded and are held in position While the folding and sealing take place. The proper positioning of the cap without tearing is thus facilitated.

Although the novel features which are characteristic of `this invention are set forth more in detail in the claims appended hereto, the nature and scope of the invention may be better understood by referring to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof, in which a specific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a capping head embodying the invention, showing the parts in initial `position vready to receive a bottle for cap sealing operations; and

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the head during the nal sealing operation.

In the following description certain specific terms are used for convenience in referring to the various details of the invention. These terms, however, are to be interpreted as broadly as the state of the art wil1 permit.

The capping head of the present invention is of the i944, to Clark and Vore, for Bottle cap and method of making the same. Said patent discloses .a preformed cap having a depressed central bore-closing diaphragm I2, adapted to enter snugly into the mouth of the bottle IlLand to seat on the interna] ledge 8 thereof, an annular pouring lip housing I3 of channel shaped cross-section adapted to extend over the pouring lip "I, and an outwardly extending, fiuted skirt I4 adapted to be contractedaround the head 6.

The housing I3 is shown provided with inner andouter substantially parallel walls I5 and a top wall I6 Ibridging said parallel walls and having raised radial ribs I'I.

Theskirt I4 is dished downwardly and is provided with pairs of crease or fold lines I8 diverg- .ing radially outwardly from the pouring lip housing I3. The crease lines I 8 of each pair are scored for folding in opposite directions, so that when the skirt I4 is contracted downwardly and inwardly on the bottle, vthe surplus material of said skirt is folded along said crease lines into predetermined triangular pleats. A disc 22 may be xedly seated on the diaphragm I2 to bear the necessary printing, to reinforce said diaphragm, and to exert seating pressure against the internal wall of the bottle. The cap may be coated in whole or in part with a suitable adhesive, such as a thermoplastic adhesive ora solvent softening adhesive, or may carry a thermoplastic binder capable of setting to form a rigid cap when cold.

The capping head embodying the present invention comprises a'bell-shaped housing 25, integral with or otherwise secured to the lower end of a crosshead 26, which may be secured in a handle for manual operation or may be slidably mounted in the turret; (not shown) of a standard capping machine.

A forming Vring 30 having a downwardly flaring opening SI ito receive the bottle neck with attached hood cap is secured to a ring frame 32 by any suitable means, and forms therewith a housing for a plurality of clamping jaws 34. A cylindrical plunger, integral with or otherwise fixed to the ring frame v32, is formed with a, lower cylindrical section 36 adapted to engage the top wall I6 of the cap I I during the capping operation, as hereinafter described. The plunger 35 is carried by an arbor 31 slidably mounted in the housing 25. The lower cylindrical section 36 of plunger 35 forms an abutment for the lower end of a coil spring 38 encircling said plunger and seated against the top wall of the'housing 25. A pin 39 secured diametrically to the crosshead 25 extends through a vertically elongated guide slot 40 in the arbor 31 to limit the movement of plunger 35.

Within the central vertical bore 42 of cylindrical plunger 35 is a hollow slidable plunger 44 having a lower disc-shaped head 45 which is adapted to extend snugly into the mouth of the bottle for seating the diaphragm I2 of the cap II on the ledge 8 of the bottle. A coil spring 41 within the plunger 44 has its lower end seated against the plunger head 45 and its upper end engaging the top of the vertical bore 42 of cylindrical plunger 35. A set screw 49 secured diametrically to the plunger 35 extends through a vertically elongated guide slot B in the plunger 44 to limit the movement of said plunger 44.

'The clamping jaws 34 are slidably seated on -the forming ring 30 and are disposed in the hollow of the ring frame 32. These clamping jaws 34 are segmental in shape and conjointly form a ring adapted to encircle the cap skirt I4, as disclosed in my above-mentioned Patent No. 2,325,160. The inner peripheral sections of these jaws 34 may be provided with teeth 52 to compress and concentrate the sealing pressure on the corresponding portions of the overlapping layers of the cap pleats during sealing. The clamping jaws 34 are relatively and independently slidable into pressing engagement with the cap skirt I4, each clamping jaw being slidable radially toward and away from the bottle neck in a radial recess '53` on the upper face of the forming ring 33.

" The clamping jaws 34 are moved radially in or out by the reciprocating movement of the ring frame 32 in the housing 25. For that purpose there are provided a plurality of bell cranks 55, each pivotally supported on a pin 56 between a corresponding pair of opposed brackets 51 which are integral or otherwise rigid with a ring 58 xedly seated in the ring framel32. One arm 59 of each crank 55 passes downwardly through openings in the rings 32 and 58, and is bifurcated to loosely receive a pin 60 extending between a pair-'vof upstanding parallel brackets 6I integral ori-'otherwise rigid with the correspondingclamping jaw 34. The other arm 63 of `each crank 55 extends obliquely upward, and during certain phases of the sealing operation is engaged by a plunger 54 which is slidably mounted in the housing and is urged into downward position by a spring 65 encircling a spindle 51 of said plunger and seated in a recess 68 inv said housing. The outer edges E3 of the crank arms 53 are curved as shown to permit free sliding movement of said edges along their respective plungers 54 as the ring frame 32 is moved upwardly. The housing 25 i-s provided with an annular ange 10 adapted .to engage the arms 63 for retracting the same.

In the capping operation the preformed hood cap II is applied to the head of the bottle I0 as shown in Fig. l, with its pouring lip housing I3 in alignment with the pouring lip 1 of the bottle and with the diaphragm section I2 in position to be seated on the internal ledge 8 of said bottle. If this cap carries a thermoplastic binder or adhesive, the cap is heated either before or after it is applied to the bottle head by (not shown) tc render the adhesive tacky or to suitable means i soften the binder preliminary to the sealing operation.

The bottle I0 with attached heated hood cap II is moved axially upward through the flaring opening 3| o the forming ring 30 by any suitable means, or else the entire capping head is depressed over the bottle. In either case, according t0 a feature of the present invention, the disc-shaped head 45 of the slidable plunger 44 rst enters the depressed central diaphragm portion I2 of the cap and firmly seats the same on the internal ledge 8 of the bottle, before the cap skirt I4 passes through the daring opening 3| of the ring 30 which is smaller than the flared diameter of the cap skirt I4. Then, as the bottle continues its axial upward movement with the plunger head 45 still holding the cap II seated on the bottle as aforesaid, the plunger 44 is forced upwardly by the bottle against the tension of spring 41, while the cap skirt I4 is contracted radially inwardly by the forming ring 30 so that when the bottle reaches the position shown in Fig. 2 the skirt will have been contracted to extend about vertically downward and the surplus material of said skirt will have been folded along the predetermined fold lines I8 to form triangular pleats.

As the bottle continues its upward movement, retracting the plunger 44 against the force of spring 41, the raised radial ribs I1 on the top 'wall I5 of cap II engage the annular section 3S of cylindrical plunger 35, whereupon the ring frame 32 and plunger 35 are moved upwardly in housing 25 against the force ofspring 38, thereby causing the Vcrank arms 63 to engage the plunger G4. The cranks 55 are thus rotated about their pivotal supports 55 by the force of the springs E5 and cause the jaws 34 to slide radially inwardly towards the cap skirt I4. This relative upward movement of plunger 35 is continued 11ntil said plunger engages the wall of housing 25, Vor until the jaws 34 have contracted the lower section of cap Iskirt I4 against the outer surface of the bottle and have exerted the necessary sealing pressure thereon to cause the overlapping layers of the pleats or folds of said skirt I4 to be adhesively secured together. 'I'he teeth 52 on the inner periphery of the sealing jaws 34 cause the pressure to be concentrated at the corresponding points of the skirt and to crease same in overlapping engagement. This concentration of pressure during sealing serves more effectively to seal the overlapping layers of said folds .together. l

During the sealing operation the sealing pressure is limited to that exerted by the springs 65. The sealing pressure is taken up by the plunger 35 resting on'the top wall I5 of the cap II seated on the pouring lip 'I of the bottle, and not by the head 45 of plunger 44 since it has been found that excessive pressure on plunger head 45 may result in Vdamage to the diaphragm I2 of cap II or even to the internal ledge 8 ofthe bottle itself. The force exerted by plunger 44 Yfor sealing the cap in the bore'of ther bottle is determined by the spring 41 and is independent of the contracting forces exerted by springs 38 and 65.

When the lsealing operation has-been completed the bottle is lowered, or the capping head raised, thereby lowering the ring frame 32 in housing 25 and releasing the pressure of plungers 64 on the crank arms 63. The arms 63 then engage the flange 'IIl which retracts the cranks 55 and jaws 34 to their original position. At the same time, Vspringl41-causes plunger 44 to descend part way with the bottle, to the original position shown in Fig. 1, thus assisting in resiliently expelling the plunger head 45 from engagement with the depressed central diaphragm portion i2 of the cap.

While certain specific features of the invention have been shown and described for purposes of illustration, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form's and details of the machine, process and product illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A capping head for allxing onto a bottle a hood cap having a central diaphragm, a top wall, and a flared marginal skirt to be folded around the outer surface of the bottle neck, comprising a housing, a plunger carried in said housing and spring pressed downwardly for engagement with the top wall of said cap, said plunger being movable upwardly into said housing in response to pressure exerted by the bottle, means carried by said plunger for resiliently engaging the diaphragm of said cap to seat 'same on the bottle prior to engagement of said plunger with said cap, and means responsive to the upward movement of said plunger for exerting an inward pressure on said skirt to fold same upon the neck of the bottle.

2. A capping head for aixing onto a bottle a hood cap having a central diaphragm, a top wall, and a flared marginal skirt to be folded around the outer surface of the bottle neck, comprising a housing, a cylindrical plunger carried in said housing, said plunger being spring pressed downwardly and having an annular bottom surface for engagement with the top wall of said cap, said plunger being movable upwardly into said housing in response to pressure exerted by the bottle, a second plunger carried centrally in said cylindrical plunger `and spring pressed downwardly beneath the latter, said second plunger having a disc bottom surface and extending downwardly a distance to engage the diaphragm of the cap to seat same on the bottle prior to engagement of said cylindrical plunger with the top wall of said cap, and means actuated in response to the upward movement of said cylindrical plunger for exerting an inward pressure on said skirt to fold same upon the neck of the bottle.

3. A capping head for alnxing onto a bottle a hood cap having a central diaphragm, an annular top wall, and a ared marginal skirt to be folded around the outer surface comprising a housing, a cylindrical plunger carried in said housing, said plunger being spring pressed downwardly and having an annular bottom surface for engagement with the top wall of said cap, said plunger being movable upwardly into said housing in response to pressure exerted by the bottle, a second plunger carried centrally of the bottle neck, i

in said cylindrical plunger and spring pressed downwardly with respect thereto, saidk second plunger having a disc bottom surface and extending downwardly a distance to engage the diaphragm of the cap to seat same on the bottle prior to engagement of said cylindrical plunger with the top of said cap, a frame rigidly secured to said cylindrical plunger and movable therewith, a skirt forming ring carried by said frame having an opening smaller than the flared diameter of said skirt and flared skirt downwardly as the saine is passed upwardly therethrough on the bottle neck, and means including clamping jaws mounted on said frame above said ring opening and actuated by the movement of said cylindrical plunger for folding inwardly and applying pressure to said skirt.

4. A capping head for alixing onto a bottle a hood cap having a central diaphragm, an annular top wall, and a flared marginal skirt to be folded around the outer surface of the bottle neck, comprising a housing, a cylindrical plunger carried in said housing, said plunger being spring pressed downwardly and having an annular bottom surface for engagement with the annular top wall of said cap, said plunger being movable upwardly into said housing in response to pressure exerted by the bottle, a second plunger carried centrally in said cylindrical plunger and spring pressed downwardly with respect thereto, having a disc bottom surface engage the diaphragm of the cap to seat same on the bottle prior to engagement of said cylindrical plunger with the tcp of said cap, a frame rigidly secured to said cylindrical plunger and movable therewith, a skirt forming ring carried by said frame having an opening smaller than the flared diameter of said skirt and arranged to fold said flared skirt downwardly as the same is passed upwardly therethrough on the bottle neck, a plurality of clamping jaws circumferentially arranged to form an opening for receiving the mar- CARL W. GOODWIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

